The thirty-first edition of the Montreal Francophone Film Festival, CINEMANIA, is set to shine a spotlight on Morocco from November 4 to 11, 2025, with backing from the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad (CCME). This unique and diverse program is a celebration of the vibrant tapestry of Moroccan cinema, featuring «a selection of several feature and short films, an exhibition, and professional events». The festival organizers aim to highlight a cinematic tradition that is «both sensitive and bold, committed and poetic, irreverent and humorous». In essence, «Morocco emerges as a creative hub poised for the future: a nation embracing international co-productions, hosting major film shoots, and nurturing collaborations that propel its filmmakers onto the world stage», they emphasize. Among the films exemplifying this richness is «L'Héritier des secrets» by Mohamed Nadif, a Moroccan-Quebec co-production hailed as «the first of its kind in several years». Other notable films include «On sera heureux» by Léa Pool, partially filmed in Morocco, «Rue Málaga» by Maryam Touzani, which has been pre-selected to represent Morocco in the Oscars race and is vying for the Audience Award in the «Spotlight» category at the 82nd Venice Film Festival, as well as «Bouchra» by Orian Bakri and Meriem Bennani, «Sirāt» by Oliver Laxe, and «13 jours, 13 nuits» by Mathieu Bourboulon, all entirely shot in Morocco. Moreover, «the role of women and intimate stories will be at the heart of this unprecedented tribute to Morocco», featuring a restored version of «Une porte sur le ciel» by Farida Benlyazid (1989), «Rock the Casbah» by Laïla Marrakchi (2013), and «Animalia» by Sofia Alaoui (2023), among others. The selection also showcases contemporary social films like «Mica» by Ismaël Ferroukhi (2020), «Les Meutes» by Kamal Lazraq (2023), «Volubilis» by Faouzi Bensaïdi (2017), and «Retour à Bollène» by Saïd Hamich (2017). Marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Green March, the film «Al Massira: la Marche verte» by Youssef Britel (2016) will be screened on November 6.
